Allegheny IU

Allegheny Intermediate Unit is one of 29 PA Intermediate Units participating in the Pennsylvania Association of Intermediate Unit’s OER implementation. This group provides a space to collaborate, evaluate, share, develop and promote the free and open use of educational resources by and for LEAs in Pennsylvania.

All resources in Allegheny IU

The introduction of Business Communication for Success, the textbook used throughout this course, notes that Ň[E]ffective communication takes preparation, practice, and persistence. There are many ways to learn communication skills; the school of experience, or Ôhard knocks,Ő is one of them. But in the business environment, a ÔknockŐ (or lesson learned) may come at the expense of your credibility through a blown presentation to a client.Ó Effective communication skills are a prerequisite for succeeding in business. Communication tools and activities connect people within and beyond the organization in order to establish the businessŐs place in the corporate community and the social community, and as a result, that communication needs to be consistent, effective, and customized for the business to prosper. Business Communication for Success provides theories and practical information that represent the heart of this course, while additional resources are included to expand or pose alternatives to the approaches chosen in the textbook. You will receive maximum benefits from this course if you complete the readings first and then use the additional resources to fill in the blanks and/or reconsider the topics in the textbook.

This course allows students to develop effective written and verbal communication strategies specifically for the workplace. From idea gathering to drafting to delivery, this course will prepare students to effectively write, present, and communicate in a variety of methods and styles, tailored to professional audiences.

This course assists students in developing real world oral communication skills. Capture the dynamics of todayęs business realities and see the benefits of effective communication. Selection of topics, library research, analysis, oral style, use of visual aids, and preparation and delivery of various types of speeches and oral presentations are included. The Internet, e-mail, community interaction, and other practical tools support student learning and increase public speaking skills. Emphasis is placed on principles of cultural diversity. Prerequisite: College-level reading and writing skills.

This course allows students to develop effective written communication strategies specifically for the workplace. From idea gathering to drafting to delivery, this course will prepare students to write a variety of documents, including memos, letters, and reports, tailored to professional audiences.

Resources to mark the 100th day of school with math activities. Challenge students to generate 100 different ways to represent the number 100. Students will easily generate 99 + 1 and 50 + 50, but encourage them to think out of the box. Challenge them to include examples from all of the NCTM Standards strands: number sense, numerical operations, geometry, measurement, algebra, patterns, data analysis, probability, discrete math, Create a class list to record the best entries. Some teachers write 100 in big bubble numeral style and then record the entries inside the numerals.

Students acquire a basic understanding of the science and engineering of space travel as well as a brief history of space exploration. They learn about the scientists and engineers who made space travel possible and briefly examine some famous space missions. Finally, they learn the basics of rocket science (Newton's third law of motion), the main components of rockets and the U.S. space shuttle, and how engineers are involved in creating and launching spacecraft.

The stock market crash on October 29, 1929 -- known as Black Tuesday -- was the "worst economic collapse in the history of the modern industrial world." It spread from the United States to national economies across the globe. It ended a decade known for its high-spirited free-spending, called the Roaring 20s, and began almost 10 years of financial desperation that would touch nearly every citizen of the United States. The Great Depression caused bank closures and business failures and by its end, saw "more than 15 million Americans (one-quarter of the workforce)" unemployed. Herbert Hoover, president at the time, did not acknowledge the depth of the crisis and assumed that the American characteristics of individualism and self reliance would quickly bring the nation out of the disaster without a need for federal intervention. But, layoffs and financial desperation at the personal level were growing: "an empty pocket turned inside out was called a 'Hoover flag' [and] the decrepit shanty towns springing up around the country were called 'Hoovervilles'." Three years into the financial crisis, Franklin Delano Roosevelt, running on a platform of federal recovery programs called the "New Deal," easily took the presidential election of 1932.

Helps K-12 students learn how our government works. Students can learn about the branches of government, the election process, and how laws are made. This includes debate topics, word puzzles, historical documents, and resources for parents and teachers.

In this task students are required to compare numbers that are identified by word names and not just digits. The order of the numbers described in words are intentionally placed in a different order than their base-ten counterparts so that students need to think carefully about the value of the numbers.

Students learn about the role engineers play in designing and building truss structures. Simulating a real-world civil engineering challenge, student teams are tasked to create strong and unique truss structures for a local bridge. They design to address project constraints, including the requirement to incorporate three different polygon shapes, and follow the steps of the engineering design process. They use hot glue and Popsicle sticks to create their small-size bridge prototypes. After compressive load tests, they evaluate their results and redesign for improvement. They collect, graph and analyze before/after measurements of interior angles to investigate shape deformation. A PowerPoint® presentation, design worksheet and data collection sheet are provided. This activity is the final step in a series on polygons and trusses.

Students are presented with a brief history of bridges as they learn about the three main bridge types: beam, arch and suspension. They are introduced to two natural forces tension and compression common to all bridges and structures. Throughout history, and today, bridges are important for connecting people to resources, places and other people. Students become more aware of the variety and value of bridges around us in our everyday lives.

Students identify different bridge designs and construction materials used in modern day engineering. They work in construction teams to create paper bridges and spaghetti bridges based on existing bridge designs. Students progressively realize the importance of the structural elements in each bridge. They also measure vertical displacements under the center of the spaghetti bridge span when a load is applied. Vertical deflection is measured using a LEGO MINDSTORMS(TM) NXT intelligent brick and ultrasonic sensor. As they work, students experience tension and compression forces acting on structural elements of the two bridge prototypes. In conclusion, students discuss the material properties of paper and spaghetti and compare bridge designs with performance outcomes.